Pakistan launches air and artillery strikes in Afghanistan, minister says 'open war'

Pakistan carries out air and artillery strikes on cities inside Afghanistan, and a senior Pakistani minister declared the country to be in an "open war" with militant elements based across the border, marking a stark escalation in rhetoric and force.

Officials in Islamabad framed the operation as a response to attacks they attribute to militant groups operating from Afghan territory. Pakistani statements emphasized cross-border firepower and the targeting of urban centers, an intensity of action that departs from earlier clashes limited to frontier areas. The use of both aircraft and artillery against sites inside another sovereign state raises immediate legal and diplomatic questions for capitals across the region and beyond.

Under international law, cross-border military operations raise considerations about necessity and proportionality under the United Nations Charter. States asserting self-defense must demonstrate imminent threat or persistent inability of the host state to prevent attacks from its soil. Those legal thresholds will be central to how international institutions and neighboring governments respond to Islamabad's claim of open conflict with militants across the border.

The strikes complicate a fraught bilateral relationship between Pakistan and Afghanistan. For decades, militants have exploited the porous frontier, and Islamabad has repeatedly pressed for action against sanctuaries. At the same time, direct military action inside Afghan population centers risks civilian harm, displacement and a diplomatic backlash from Kabul and its partners. Humanitarian and refugee agencies in the region are likely to monitor flows across the border if fighting intensifies.

Regional powers are also poised to weigh in. China, which has close security ties with Pakistan and growing influence in Afghanistan, may urge restraint while protecting its economic interests. India, viewing any Pakistani military assertiveness through the lens of its own rivalry with Islamabad, could see the situation as destabilizing. The United States and European capitals, which have long framed counterterrorism cooperation as linked to regional stability, face the familiar choice of condemning cross-border strikes while acknowledging legitimate security concerns.

Diplomacy will be crucial to prevent further escalation. Neighbors such as Iran and Central Asian states could act as intermediaries or call for talks, while the United Nations could be asked to assess civilian impacts and legal questions. Absent transparent, verifiable intelligence about the identities and bases of the militants targeted, third-party mediators and international observers will have a limited capacity to validate Pakistan's claims.

For Pakistan, the action signals domestic political pressure to demonstrate decisive measures against groups that have struck within its territory. For Afghanistan, the strikes risk undermining fragile governance and complicating efforts to manage armed groups within its borders. For civilians in affected Afghan cities, the immediate concerns will be safety, access to medical care and displacement.

The coming hours and days will test whether Islamabad's strikes lead to a wider state-to-state confrontation or prompt a negotiated, multilateral response aimed at uprooting militant networks without broadening the conflict. International actors face a narrow window to shape a de-escalation that addresses both Pakistan's security grievances and Afghanistan's territorial sovereignty while limiting harm to civilians.